By MICHAEL CRIMMINS
Glasgow News 1
The Green River Ferry at Mammoth Cave National Park will be closed until further notice due to “extensive damage” it sustained during April’s severe weather.
The ferry’s navigational cables and support towers are “being assessed” by park teams to determine the next steps forward, Superintendent Barclay Trimble said in a park press release.
“Our team is assessing the damage at the Green River Ferry to determine if we can simply make repairs to the existing cables and towers or if a full reconstruction of the system is required.” Trimble said. “The ferry is an important link for our visitors, staff, and local communities to cross the Green River, but, unfortunately, the damage we are seeing from the flood is not easily fixed.”
Normally, during the month of April, the water level at the Green River Ferry crossing averages between 15 feet to 22 feet with a water flow just under 5,000 cubic feet per second. During the recent flood, the river reached a crest of 59.54 feet with a waterflow of just over 55,000 cubic feet per second, according to the press release.
“This high volume of water caused a portion of one of the concrete anchors to be physically pulled from the riverbank and moved 20 feet downhill,” the release states. “It also caused extreme stress on the four support towers which are now leaning slightly.”
“Until the cable system and towers are repaired, the ferry cannot operate,” the release continued.
The Green River Ferry day use area will remain open as well as the Green River Ferry Road North, which will remain open to passenger vehicles only. Recreational vehicles and vehicles with trailers are prohibited.
Future closures of the Green River Ferry area may be required once a construction plan has been fully developed, the release states.
